Question What size to replace HDD in Leonovo 3000?

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titaniumsparrow

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Hi!
I've got an old laptop laying around, it's an ancient Lenovo 3000 N200 with pre-installed Windows Vista.

The HDD got an issue many years ago, and factory reset didn't work (or rather, it worked but the corruption just moved around), so I figured it was literally busted and just scrapped the latop in my attic.

I got it out today and it still powers on and all, and for a laugh I wanted to see if I could get it up and running.

The BIOS can't find the HDD anymore and I believe it's really dead. PC only runs black screen/white text with "can't find OS" (since HDD is dead).

I was wondering if I could put in a new HDD, but it needs to fit the casing obviously. But I don't know how to find the correct size! I also want it cheapest possible. It's just a fun little project I want to try. The HDD sort of slides into a dock if that makes sense. If I can't find a cheap HDD, is it possible to use an adapter and aUSB stick?

If I get a new HDD sorted, will my PC be able to install Windows Vista? (ew) Or can I / do I have to use my physical copies of windows installations. (I have win XP and Win discs. Can I use these multiple times? I've already got devices running this at the moment, I don't want any issues.)

Sorry if these are really stupid questions, lol.

Here's a pic of the HDD.

alssLyB.jpg
 
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titaniumsparrow

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USAFRet said:
Any 2.5" HDD will work.
To install, you WILL need a Vista DVD to boot and install from.

However, it is a 13+ year old laptop.
www.cnet.com

Lenovo 3000 N200 review: Lenovo 3000 N200

Lenovo 3000 N200
www.cnet.com www.cnet.com

How much money and effort do you want to put into resurrecting a desperately slow laptop, with a badly outdated OS?
Click to expand...

Oh, my - so the Vista install that came with the laptop is linked with the HDD? (Stupid question, just thought maybe it was related to chip or something. There's a "lenovo repair button" on the laptop if that makes a difference.

If Vista is linked to the HDD, why do I need vista speficially? (On their website it says it should be able to run XP)

I'm not keen on spending lots of money, I just thought that if it was possible, to play around with it a little bit :)
 
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USAFRet

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titaniumsparrow said:
Oh, my - so the Vista install that came with the laptop is linked with the HDD? (Stupid question, just thought maybe it was related to chip or something. There's a "lenovo repair button" on the laptop if that makes a difference.

If Vista is linked to the HDD, why do I need vista speficially? (On their website it says it should be able to run XP)

I'm not keen on spending lots of money, I just thought that if it was possible, to play around with it a little bit :)
Click to expand...
No, the operating system (Windows) lives on the HDD.
The license is linked to the system.

If you want to install XP, sure. You'll need to find a valid Win XP install. Not some gunk you downloaded from the internet.
You'll also need a valid XP license. Otherwise, it will expire in 30 days.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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NightHawkRMX said:
Any 2.5in SATA HDD will work. Heck, you could use a 120gb SSD for about $22 that would improve performance.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0722XPTL6?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1&pldnSite=1

However, I agree that you should really consider whether you want to put money into such an old laptop.

If you want to install xp the xp disk can work. The disk can be reused but you will need a new key
Click to expand...

But can I only use the key on the disk one time? I've got a physical, legit Windows XP CD bought just before it went off the market. Is the CD a one-time only?

Oh yeah you're right, I saw some cheap SSDs here too, with 120 gb. :)

Are legit install keys expensive? I've got a Linux Mint USB I would have thought would be fun to try, but I've been warned against using it as a a standalone OS and probably the laptop wouldn't handle it. (Plus, if I got it up and running I'd want to play some older games that I don't think Linux could run?)

Sorry for all my incessant asking. I understand that there's no point spending lots of money into some "old junk" - and I don't want that. So just want to see if I can do something fun with this laptop. :)
 
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USAFRet

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Linux is NOT to be avoided as a standalone OS.
In fact, for a system of that vintage, it is a great learning tool.

Games, not so much though.
Then again,. that hardware can't do many games anyway.

Don't bother with an SSD. The older OS's (Vista/XP) do not know how to talk to a solid state drive.
It will work, but not great.

Windows licensing is convoluted and strange.
IF you can find a valid Windows Vista install, that will almost certainly work on that particular hardware.
XP or anything else...you WILL need a valid license for that particular install.

And of course, XP/Vista/Win7...all completely out of any support from Microsoft.
They get no more security updates.
 
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geofelt

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You might first test to see if all works without the HDD.
Run memtest86.
It boots from a usb stick and does not use windows.
You can download the free edition here:
https://www.memtest86.com/download.htm

If you can run a full pass with NO errors, your ram should be ok.

A 2.5" sata ssd is cheap and would transform the performance of the laptop.
There should be no physical compatibility issue.

You will need to find appropriate drivers for vista or XP.
I think lenovo maintains a EOL driver list, but I have not looked for it.

Just for kicks, why not try installing windows 10?
You will, I think need/want to use the 32 bit version because of the limited ram capability.
You may be able to install the lenovo 32 bit drivers sufficient to get things working.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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(By games, I meant just any old crummy game, nothing fancy. Just your average late 90s/early 00s lil games that are easy to come by. But it's not a must) But I think Linux has some sort of emulator anyway?

But should I get another Linux OS? I've heard Mint needs higher specs than the others. But I'm also very new to Linux so I would prefer one that was easy, haha.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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titaniumsparrow said:
(By games, I meant just any old crummy game, nothing fancy. Just your average late 90s/early 00s lil games that are easy to come by. But it's not a must) But I think Linux has some sort of emulator anyway?

But should I get another Linux OS? I've heard Mint needs higher specs than the others. But I'm also very new to Linux so I would prefer one that was easy, haha.
Click to expand...
Linux+emulator+games...will not work, especially on older lo spec hardware.

If you're looking at Windows games, Linux is not for you.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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geofelt said:
You might first test to see if all works without the HDD.
Run memtest86.
It boots from a usb stick and does not use windows.
You can download the free edition here:
https://www.memtest86.com/download.htm

If you can run a full pass with NO errors, your ram should be ok.

A 2.5" sata ssd is cheap and would transform the performance of the laptop.
There should be no physical compatibility issue.

You will need to find appropriate drivers for vista or XP.
I think lenovo maintains a EOL driver list, but I have not looked for it.

Just for kicks, why not try installing windows 10?
You will, I think need/want to use the 32 bit version because of the limited ram capability.
You may be able to install the lenovo 32 bit drivers sufficient to get things working.
Click to expand...

Oh! I think I have a stick with memtest somewhere! I might just do that, thanks.

Would I not have to pay for Windows10?
 
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NightHawkRMX

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From my personal experience, Windows XP can run on an SSD and it runs flawlessly speed wise. The lack of support for trim and things of the like can degrade an SSD quickly, however.

Retro gaming on Linux is not happening.

Windows 10 can be used for free unactivated. It will work fine indefinitely, however it just has a watermark.
Core 2 duo can run windows 10 alright, however, 2gb ram will be pretty bad for performance.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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Darnit, my memtest usb is probably too new for this laptop (lol, as is literally everything)
And I don't have another USB that I can format at the moment. I could probably burn a CD though?

Specs for the Lenovo 3000 N200

cpu: Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 / 2 GHz
chip: Mobile Intel PM965 Express
RAM: DDR2 SDRAM
It says on Cnet that there's 1 gb of ram, but my BIOS reads 2 gb, and I've got 2 ram sticks.
Cnet also says there are 2 slots but only 1 used, so there's probably been an uprade at some point. My laptop was put together in April 2008 I think (according to the HDD) and bought in August 2008 if I remember correctly.

Anyway. max supported RAM is 4 gb.

graphics: PCI Express x16 - NVIDIA GeForce Go 7300

So, pretty crappy. I remember Vista was absolute dog ** on this PC.

I'm not hellbent on paying games on this laptop btw. It was just a suggestion. I've got another laptop and a desktop, so no worries. Just thought it would be fun to poke around on it. Would def be interesting if Linux could run on it - or even Win10, but I kinda doubt that. Would enjoy learning a bit of Linux on it though.
 
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USAFRet

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Linux will run.
Win 10 will run, sort of. It will be disturbingly slow. To the point of not being able to run any "games".

I have a Toshiba laptop only a bit newer, simply as a test box for Win 10.
It is SLOW. Even if you were to bother putting a solid state drive in it....the CPU/RAM/GPU is disturbingly slow.
It was slow when it was new.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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I've got the Linux Mint 18.2 Cinnamon 64.bit version. Would it be able to run it, being 64 bit?
The Lenovo support site says
"Supports up to 3GB or 4GB of addressable memory, depending on whether the operating system is a 32-bit or 64-bit operating system. "
But if I've only got 2 gb, I would guess 32 bit is the best option? Or does it matter?
 
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NightHawkRMX

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I'm sure Windows 10 can run. I had a similar era Pentium Dual Core desktop. Ran Windows 10.

Maybe the ISO was "burned" onto the USB as GPT so it won't work in an old system.

Heck, if you want to test out Linux, you can do so currently since Linux can run off of a USB drive without needing to be installed.

Load Linux onto a USB formatted as MBR. Make sure the bios sees it and its set at the top of the boot order, then boot to it.

You can get a feel for how it runs on your machine (granted the USB may make it slower than otherwise).

I suggest Lubuntu Linux. On weak systems, Lubuntu runs far better than Ubuntu of which it is based.
https://lubuntu.net/

Anymore I don't have any laptop the age of that system, however, I have a netbook with a Celeron N3060 and 2gb ram. It chugged on the W10 that came with it, but on Lubuntu it wasn't bad at all.
 
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NightHawkRMX

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titaniumsparrow said:
I've got the Linux Mint 18.2 Cinnamon 64.bit version. Would it be able to run it, being 64 bit?
The Lenovo support site says
"Supports up to 3GB or 4GB of addressable memory, depending on whether the operating system is a 32-bit or 64-bit operating system. "
But if I've only got 2 gb, I would guess 32 bit is the best option? Or does it matter?
Click to expand...
The 64 bit will run since your CPU is compatible with 64-bit instructions, however, the 32 bit may run a little faster.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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NightHawkRMX said:
I'm sure Windows 10 can run. I had a similar era Pentium Dual Core desktop. Ran Windows 10.

Maybe the ISO was "burned" onto the USB as GPT so it won't work in an old system.

Heck, if you want to test out Linux, you can do so currently since Linux can run off of a USB drive without needing to be installed.

Load Linux onto a USB formatted as MBR. Make sure the bios sees it and its set at the top of the boot order, then boot to it.

You can get a feel for how it runs on your machine (granted the USB may make it slower than otherwise).

I suggest Lubuntu Linux. On weak systems, Lubuntu runs far better than Ubuntu of which it is based.
https://lubuntu.net/

Anymore I don't have any laptop the age of that system, however, I have a netbook with a Celeron N3060 and 2gb ram. It chugged on the W10 that came with it, but on Lubuntu it wasn't bad at all.
Click to expand...

Would I be able to run it off the USB even before having a HDD in the PC? (or, rather, the PC not seeing the HDD?)

I'd def try the Lubuntu then! Just need another USB stick it seems, haha :)
 
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USAFRet

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titaniumsparrow

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Haha, aww, lol at "cheesiest" system. :) Will be worth a read!

I tried using my Linux Mint USB and it worked fine! I was surprised at how well it ran. :) Watched a little bit of Youtube videos on it, and it did "freeze" a bit (video played fine, but the mouse didnt respond for a bit. Giving it a few secs sorted it out.

I had some errors on startup, but they might have been linked to the HDD? I googled it when it happened but didn't find any proper answers that were relevant to me - and just giving it about 30 secs did the trick anyway. Didn't have to do anything.
 
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titaniumsparrow

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To be fair, my newer laptop also chokes on Youtube videos if I watch them on memoryhoggin' Chrome.

Ideally I should prob test a 32 bit version of linux mint I guess? But it was nice to see that the PC in theory was able to ...somewhat function :)
 
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